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Brackolaan
"Who causes the minutes to fall dead, adding up to no passing hour; bringing no change from day to night, as the unseen sun fails to filter into the ever-present shadows? Who is this Dark Lord who turns starless nights into sunless days?" Sultana Gazala al-Hadi, 1462 S.V. The lands of Talinkal are among the few which managed to survive the poisonously apocalyptic fury which rained from the heavens during the Wars, if only due to sheer luck. Though it suffered- and indeed still does- the full wrath of Scylla's brutal and often random weather patterns, generally in the form of ferocious snowstorms brought from the southern pole or monsoons from the Lennus ocean, Talinkal's soil quality remains viable for farming and there are enough locally available materials needed for the construction of proper settlements. Most of the people who survived the horrors rained down upon Helfar fled to these lands, hoping for salvation and survival. They were no doubt unpleasantly surprised to find these lands already claimed. No one knows much about the entity known only as the Dark Lord of the Brass Tower, the unquestioned ruler of Brackolaan. His name, age, race, ethnicity, goals, not even what he looks like. At all times he wears the same suit of full body armor forged of blackened brass and iron, similar to the construction of the great tower where he spends almost all of his time. There are only a few things that anyone can say they really know about him for certain. He has claimed dominion over Talinkal ever since shortly after Helfar's destruction, and remains as powerful now as he was centuries ago. He rarely makes appearances, and almost never grants audiences, preferring to leave almost all of the day to day affairs and running of his kingdom in the hands of his seneschals; many of whom are known to be under the domination of Possessors or other secretive horrors. And he is obsessed with his private arena grounds, spending many hours of most days overseeing the training of gladiators and the battles they fight for his amusement. As little time and effort as he actually puts into ruling his kingdom, few are even certain why he is lord, but none are so foolish as to publically question his sovereignty for fear of being taken by his spies into the pits themselves. What his goals for the future are also unknown, though his seneschals' desires to increase the kingdom's borders and add to their collections of slaves is well documented. There are whispers, nonetheless, of who he is or was. In the back rooms of taverns and in the privacy of trusted friends, stories and rumors abound. Some say he is one of the powerful wizards who helped or maybe even led the efforts to wreak the terrific destruction that tore Helfar apart, and his cursed soul is forced to remain within his armor. Other stories suggest he is a favored servant of the Hells, a demonic Mohrg or Devil, bound to a physical body so that he can spread suffering and misery across the rest of the galaxy over time. And still others tell tales of a twisted and sadistic immortal who is simply looking for newer and better ways to pass his eternity. There are even suggestions that he is not a man but a powerful Possessor that has, well, possessed a man, and uses the arena to build new hosts or perhaps breed the choicest 'meals' for his 'brethren'. The Dark Lord himself seems content to let the commoners guess and spread rumor.. Perhaps this is his plan, to keep his enemies guessing as to his true nature. Brackolaan is divided into several provinces- Eydlin, Olssau, Kres, Jono, Honorre, Tahknik, and Greblon, with the fortress-city of Tossol as the capital where the Brass Tower stands. Each city and town within these provinces is ruled by a varying number of seneschals. These seneschals wield political power based on the income they take and the number of people they lord over. As noted before, a number of these seneschals are known to be people under the control of frighteningly well organized Possessors, constantly hoarding magical lore and power to fuel their mysterious and generally evil goals, but they are rarely as cruel as one might expect from aberrant horrors. Though the Kingdom exercises oppressive control and domination of all it touches, the rules themselves are by and large fair- even if those in charge are fiendish things, efficiency is job one and direct, active cruelty tends to be wasteful- something the Kingdom cannot afford given its lack of allies. The seneschals have long since determined the minimum level of freedom and fairness necessary to prevent open revolt, and they are apt to leave it that way- even if it means killing some of their fellows every so often.. The Kingdom of Blackened Brass, having no one who is really all that willing to trade with them, makes do with whatever they can mine, farm, refine, and build themselves. Only in the last five years have they even developed radio technology- which is used primarily for military purposes rather than civilian. They are at a stage not unlike China circa 1958 A.D.; possessing the necessary tools to bring themselves from a pre-industrial to a fully industrial era, but lacking the knowledge and technical skill necessary to realize the dream. Metalwork is still done by blacksmiths more often than foundry workers, steel mills and production factories are rare, plastics are difficult to make, and medical science is primitive. To counteract these shortcomings, the Talinkalites rely more on magic than science, particularly Enchantments that can enhance otherwise mundane personnel and materiel. Their military is composed mostly of dominated and brainwashed monsters, undead, and humanoid soldiers, along with simplistic cannons and catapults, and it has been confirmed that no less than five clutches of Brass and Black Dragons have somehow been subjugated and serve in the Dark Lord's armies. But these are a largely defensive force- Talinkal does not initiate combat, not officially. Bandit-style gangs of slavers, however, regularly raid the Jehmarrahj Emirates and occasionally other nations for fresh blood. Primary Ethnic groupings: Mixed. Order of Racial Commonalities: Unknown due to lack of shared census. Believed to be largely Humans, Draconids, Kemono, Dwarves, Halflings, and Other. Primary Language: Bengali. Secondary Languages: Punjabi, Luyia, Javanese. Architectural Designs: Neo-Gothica. Helfar Back to Main Page